Siblings in Service

Today, July 18th, Shantoya Wiley graduated from the Leader Training Course in the 3rd Regiment. Her brother, Carlos Wiley, graduated from the Leader Development and Assessment Course just a few weeks prior.

Cadet Shantoya Wiley of Foxtrot Company of 3rd Regiment of LTC. U.S. ARMY PHOTO BY KATIE GRAY.

Shantoya entered the course directly after graduating high school. She’ll begin her ROTC classroom curriculum as a freshman this year at Wentworth Military Academy in Lexington, Missouri.

Carlos just completed his junior year. Now that his LDAC is complete, he only needs to graduate from the University of Central Missouri before commissioning as a 2nd Lt.

“I’m only 18 right now, but me and my brother are going to be the same rank basically at the same time,” Shantoya said.

With a Lt. Col. for a father, the siblings are walking in military footsteps. In Shantoya’s case, those footsteps were very recently traveled by her brother. He’s happily giving her guidance along the way.

The last time the two saw each other face-to-face at Fort Knox, Carlos found that his sister was growing from her training.

“She sounded great and very confident,” he said. “I think she really learned a lot. She adapted and kept learning and has started developing her own leadership style.”

For many cadets, LTC is about discovering what they want to do with their professional lives. They are not committed to joining the Army yet, and most are unfamiliar with their different branching options.

Shantoya now knows what role she wants within the forces and is planning on focusing her education around it.

“I really just wanted to learn more about the military, and now I’ve figured out what I want to do in the military. I want to do nursing; the medical field. He’s going engineering, but I’m not really a math person. I want to do something that helps people.”

The Wileys have both graduated, and Fort Knox’s summer training is growing closer to completion. LDAC and LTC helped thousands of cadets grow as leaders this summer, and for these two cadets the courses have improved familial ties as well.

“This experience has definitely brought us closer together, and now we’re all about to be in the military doing different things,” Shantoya said. “We’re excited.”